William Levi Dawson

William Levi Dawson attended the Tuskegee Institute at age 13, and after graduating in 1921, went on to receive a B.A. at the Horner Institute of Fine Arts in Kansas City, Missouri (1925), and a Master's degree at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago. In 1931, he created the School of Music at Tuskegee and became the conductor of the Tuskegee Choir. The choir performed at the grand opening of the Radio City Music Hall in New York, and performed for presidents Hoover and Roosevelt. As a composer, he was known for a number of symphonies that drew upon American folk music and spirituals.